Hearing held for rezoning of Jefferson County wetlands

January 14, 2013

CHARLES TOWN - Just more than a mile west of Charles Town lies the habitat of many plants and creatures so unique that the Nature Conservancy of West Virginia makes sure those species and their home are protected.

Concern has erupted in the county over this 90-acre parcel of wetlands, known as the Altona-Piedmont Marsh, after a boarding neighbor, Jefferson Asphalt Products, requested for the property to be rezoned to the multi-use category of residential/light industrial/ commercial.

During a public hearing Thursday evening in Charles Town, Jefferson County Commission president Dale Manuel called the marsh a "unique and fragile ecosystem."

Article Photos

Journal photo by Michelle HorstAnnette van Hilst and Dirk Stansbury of D.A. Stansbury Engineering present the rezoning request of Jefferson Asphalt during a public hearing in Charles Town.

"The rezoning request is from rural to the anything goes zone, which would allow for anything except the use that actually exists on the property," John Maxey, board member of the Blue Ridge Watershed Coalition, said during the hearing.

Maxey asked the commission to deny the request and instead have Jefferson Asphalt apply for a conditional use permit, which would allow for public input along the way and better protect the surrounding wetlands.

A resident of Altona Farm and partial owner of the marsh property, Faye Davenport, said she wanted to see a detailed plan presented before the commission prior to any rezoning taking place.

"This is one of the few rare marshes for the entire United States. It's here, we didn't ask to have it, it's here. Twenty-four plants have specifically adapted to this environment, and this site provides important habitat for a variety of birds and animals, some of them are rare and elusive," Davenport said.

"Marshes recharge ground water supplies, and marshes even supply such special services that people build replicas to help with clean water," she said.

Co-owner of Jefferson Asphalt, John Thomas, said the business, which has been in existence since 1968, understands the concern of the wetlands surrounding the property.

He said although there has not been a site plan designed, the general idea is to move the asphalt company from its current location and have the site rezoned to better compete with its surrounding growth area - Locust Hill and Tuscawilla Hills.

"We have kept out of the 100-foot buffer zone around the marsh, and we intend to stay out. It's a protected wetland and we intend to keep it that way for future use," Thomas said.

Jennifer Brockman, director of Jefferson County's planing and zoning department, said the reason the asphalt company is allowed to exist on the current site, which is not zoned industrial, is because the company was in existence before the zoning ordinance went into effect. West Virginia state law allows for the grandfathering clause to be applied in such a case.

From here, the request is put through a two-week comment period before it comes before the county commission for a workshop session, during which it can vote on the rezoning request if it chooses to.

The property is located two miles west of Charles Town on the south side of W.Va. 51 and totals 34.27 acres.